5 National Parks Out West You Need To See On Your Next Road Trip!
Not sure where to go on your next road trip?
Well, you came to the right place!
In this blog, we tell you our favorite locations at each of these National Parks and why we love them!
We spent a lot of time researching places to visit out west. While many blogs recommended doing The Mighty Five. We wanted to see the Grand Canyon while we were there. So, we made our final decision and chose to skip Capitol Reef for now.
#1 Zion National Park, Utah
Two of the best hiking trails in Zion were The Narrows hike and Canyon Overlook Trail!
This was by far our favorite National Park out west! From the moment you drive into this park, you will be amazed! The towering red mountains are a sight that you will never forget!
The Narrows hike and Canyon Overlook Trail were great hikes, but The Narrows was sometimes hard for our group. Mainly because you have to walk on a riverbed, where the stones vary from tiny pebbles to large boulders that could trip you.
To make The Narrows hike easier, we recommend getting Zion outfitter's rental gear! Specifically, the hiking stick and the boots were a game changer!
#2 Arches National Park, Utah
The best hiking trails in Arches were the Delicate Arch trail, Fiery Furnace, and Landscape Arch!
Our favorite out of these was The Fiery Furnace hike! This adventure requires a permit to enter and is considered very difficult.
If you decide to go there, get the all trails app and download the map before you go out, or you will get lost more than what is considered normal! Another thing to note is you have to start the map when your at the trail head!!
This is very important because it won’t know where your at otherwise. In general, this is a great app to have when adventuring any of these National Parks out west.
#3 Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
The best hiking trails were Sunrise Point Trail to Sunset Point, Bryce Point, Bryce Canyon Rim Trail & Inspiration Point!
Insider tip: If you go from Sunrise Point to Sunset Point, your journey will take you through the valley, which is a great experience!
You can then take the Rim Trail back to the parking lot where you started. Within this bigger loop there are a ton of hiking trails you can take. All of these have incredible views and showcase some of the most vibrant color scenery out west that you will see!
#4 Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
The best hiking trails and observation points are on the North Rim. Our favorites were Bright Angel, Point Imperial, Cape Royal, Walhalla & Roosevelt.
This is one of the most iconic National Parks out west for a reason!
What's that, you might ask?
Of course, the incredible sights at the overlooks! All of them were very easy to access, which we thought was great. The views here were unbelievable and unlike anything we had ever seen!
#5 Canyonlands National Park, Utah
The best overlooks at Canyonlands were in the Island In The Sky District! Our favorites were Mesa Arch, Schafer View Trail, Orange Cliffs, Upheaval Dome, and Grand View.
The National Park System did a great job putting signs in easy-to-see locations, making it very easy to navigate, unlike others.
This National Park also does a great job showcasing the scenery out west. The depth and distance you can see here is unbelievable! Overall, we recommend making a stop here especially considering how close it is to Arches!
If we had to pick two of our favorite hiking trails, we would say Mesa Arch and Schafer Viewpoint!
These are the 5 epic National Parks out west you need to adventure on your next road trip!
This entire road trip was an experience that none of us will forget, and we will cherish it forever! If we had to choose our favorite we visited, we would say Zion by far!
We hope this blog can help you when you're planning your next road trip through our beautiful country!
We will also be releasing more blog and vlog content from our adventures through these National Parks out west! We have a lot of inside tips and tricks we want to share and some incredible footage we got while exploring!
Take care and happy trails, everyone!
Besides our awesome blogs, check out our State and National Park Checklists!
